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Saturday, November 17, 2012

A Night of Apsara Dance and Khmer Buffet

We told Mr Tihm (our guide/driver) that we want to watch the Apsara dance. He then referred us to Sophea Angkor. A restaurant that offers buffet dinner and cultural dance performance. He made the reservations for us and brought us there on our second night in Siem Reap. Yay! He was so nice.

Sophea Angkor Restaurant

He left us at the restaurant and promised to pick us up after the dinner and the show. The restaurant was huge. It was bursting with tourists. We were promptly entertained. We just show them our stubs and we were seated right on. We did not waste our time and raided the buffet spread right away. ;)

my first plate

Mine obviously, I love veggies! :) I had Cendol for dessert. It has that green worm-like jellies, coconut milk, beans, sugar and shaved ice.

my dessert and drink

They have a wide spread of food! Everything is included in the rate (even drinks). Almost all cuisines were present. The food stations were also organized, so you won't have a hard time looking for a particular dish.

Beau's plate

Like this one below, we got this from the all meat station. We loved the chicken satay and the kebab! Yum!

meat galore

Beau got a dessert similar to our halo-halo hehe.

his dessert

Of course, seafood. They also have that, although very limited kinds.

some clams

We also tried some of their bread and pastries. But wait, what was that dragon fruit doing there? For the first time, I tried tasting one and I regreted it! Haha! Yaiiks, I didn't like how it tastes and feels in my mouth. Well, at least I had the courage to try. ;)

more desserts

We were halfway through our dinner when the Apsara show started. It is a Khmer classical dance. This dance narrates classical myths or religious stories.

the star Apsara dancer :)

Their costumes were based on the devatas you can see in the bas-reliefs of Angkor Wat.

Apsara Dance

The dance steps were usually consisted of slow dance movements, full of finesse and grace.

isn't she pretty? :)

Look at that very intricate costume. Very nice eh?

apsara routine

It was more or less a 2 -hour performance. When the dance was over, guests were given a chance to take photos with the dancers.

photo time with a fellow tourist :)

We asked Mr. Tihm to take us to the night market after the show. I want to check out more of the city.

shopping!

I ended up shopping that night haha. I liked haggling with them. They were the most pleasant merchants I've met in SEA (to date). They were courteous and friendly. :)

roaming around the night market

It was a wonderful day! We explored the temples, had a sumptuous buffet dinner, witnessed their cultural dance and I was able to do another thing that I like, which was shopping! I started to fall in love with Siem Reap that day. I loved everything about it. ♥♥♥